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Keeping Goldfish
by Jennifer MacDonald

I've just added three new members to our family, two comet goldfish and a clown pleco. I've never had a fish before and now realize what kind of crazy myths are flying around about the health and care of fish, many of them started by pet stores

Beware of the pet stores! I don't warn people away from pet stores to be mean, keeping others from their right to earn or living, I do it because most of the pet stores I've dealt with devalue the lives of the animals they're using to make a buck on. Those people are salespeople not animal care technicians or specialists of any kind. Many of them earn commissions, so it matters not to them if you can handle the pet your buying, they need the money.

When I bought these three fish, I knew nothing about their needs. I depended on the people at the pet store to give me the lowdown on fish care. I bought two goldfish that were about an inch long, an algae eater of a type that (I know now) is incompatible with goldfish and a fish bowl kit. It didn't take me long to realize these fish wouldn't last a week in this two gallon fish bowl and that they needed a better habitat. I left them in the bowl for the night and when I woke the algae eater had died. I certainly wouldn't have brought him home had I known more about his needs but the salesperson assured me he would fit in just fine. The lack of a meaningful education on animal care cost that fish his life and such knowledge should certainly be a requirement for anyone selling pets to people. A person selling fish should take up the task of learning whatever there is to know about the fish they are selling. The salespersons response to the death of the fish was "Well, come on back and we will give you another one."

No thanks! I started my own research on fish care and went somewhere else to get my fishes needs met. I discovered that, although all the pet stores I went to try to sell them with the utmost assurance, the fishbowl is a death sentence to any fish, especially one that will grow to be between eight and sixteen inches long. Goldfish need more than a fishbowl and a plastic plant to keep them going. In fact, I've learned that most successful fish owners use the ten gallons per fish equation when dealing with their living arrangements.

Having just bad mouthed pet stores, I must say some are better than others, so if you must buy at a pet store, know what your doing before you go in. When I decided to transport my fish to a large tank, I found out exactly what I needed before going in and made sure I didn't have to rely completely on pet store information to build my fish a new home. Checking prices is wise, for example, Petland's prices on all fish equipment were 46% higher then Pisces Pet Emporium! That's a huge difference and I was able to buy my fish better quality equipment for lower cost at Pisces.

The Realities of Keeping Goldfish >>> page two

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